Support St. Mark's

Thanks for visiting the St Mark’s giving page. If you care to help St. Mark’s sustain and grow its programs and ministries, and support our wonderful clergy and staff, please consider the helpful information below. You will find theological foundations of giving (Stewardship), practical ways to do so, and information on how to volunteer.

We accept financial gifts in the form of checks, securities, employer matching gifts and in-kind donations.

Please visit our Stewardship site for information to help you make thoughtful decisions about your support of St. Mark's in 2015, or click the button to submit your pledge.

What is Stewardship?

The Anglo-Saxon word from which we have our word “steward” is the word “sty ward” meaning “the keeper of the sty.” In true Anglo-Saxon linguistic tradition, it’s not necessarily a pleasant word, or a pleasant job for that matter, to “keep the sty,” but I suppose someone has to do it!

That’s often how we feel about fundraising – someone has to do it! Stewardship campaigns are about raising money to pay for bills and accomplish the ministry goals of a parish. We challenge ourselves with goals and hope to meet the challenge. But, on a deeper level, money is only one part of the picture, and while it’s vital for keeping this parish running, it’s not the most important, or the most challenging way we ask you to give of yourselves.

The bigger picture is theological and spiritual in nature. Giving money is one way of expressing our spiritual depth. But we know that Stewardship is bigger than money. In fact, giving money alone, without a true sense of Stewardship behind it, isn’t the point at all. What is Stewardship then? Stewardship is about giving ourselves to the purposes of God – our time, our talent, our treasure. If I had to sum it all up in a concise definition, I would say: Stewardship has to do with the practicalities of love. We act as spiritual stewards when we live out the practicalities of God’s love. Sounds pretty abstract, but it’s actually quite simple, because it’s simply about the business of living. It is as if God asks: “Where are you when it comes to living out the practicalities of love?” And, one way of the other, we answer that question with our actions – How we live, with whom we live and spend our time, and why we do the things we do. In short, our lives are the answer to God’s question. Stewardship is the use of you r time, your gifts of intelligence and ability towards the goal of following Christ’s example of goodness, compassion and justice for all people.

—Matt McDermott, Rector

What is a Pledge?

A pledge is a commitment to give a certain amount of money each year to help St Mark’s grow in its ministry and mission. Most of our support comes from annual pledges. Knowing a total pledge amount allows us to create a responsible budget.

Your annual pledge helps us support all the ministries and the programs of St Mark’s! Your pledge tells us, “I am a part of this community, and I want to show that this church and its goals are important to me.” Pledging is considered to be an important part of membership at St. Mark’s. Ninety percent of our members make an annual pledge of support.

Proportional Giving

Any regular, intentional program of giving a specific amount of money is, in a way, “proportional” giving.

The Bible states a specific hope to “tithe” – that is, to give back to God one-tenth of what we have received from God. This is a goal to work towards. Most of us are striving to reach this proportional goal.

We encourage you to simply begin your commitment to proportional giving. Try to give two percent each year, or three. The average pledge to churches nationally is 2.6 percent of income. Perhaps that’s a good place to start.

The important thing is that the Biblical notion of proportionality is fair for everyone. You pledge and give in proportion to what you have or make. A person living on a fixed, modest income who gives 5% is a more intentional proportional giver than the wealthy person who dashes off a check for $10,000.

A certain percentage of St. Mark’s members do “tithe” by giving a tenth of their income but the wonderful diversity of our community is reflected, in part, by the varied attitudes toward (and comfort levels with) annual pledging and proportional giving. This is a growing experience for all of us.

How much is enough for me?

The easy answer is that this is between you and God. The hard questions to ponder are, how thankful are you for your life and its blessings, and how are you best able to share that thankfulness with God? How generous would you like to be, and how close can you come to that desire? One priest suggests that the goal is to bring our standard of giving in line with our standard of living. In the end, “enough” is a deeply personal decision – but undoubtedly, a commitment to your faith community and what it stands for, is a all to pledge your resources to facilitate the work we do here. Please begin to prayerfully consider how you will give so that when the time comes, you know exactly how much is enough.

Complete a Pledge Form

Your Giving is Appreciated

We respect your commitment to the faithful stewardship of the gifts that have been given to you.

When you give to St Mark’s, we are truly grateful. We keep that respect by accurate and confidential records of your contributions, and send you complete quarterly and annual statements. Please let us know if you wish your giving to St Mark’s to be anonymous.

Planned Giving

What is Planned Giving?

A planned gift is a gift deferred – a way of expressing your wishes now about how your resources are to be used later. A planned gift is a commitment made to protect those you love – and an opportunity to benefit the Church for generations to come.

Planned giving is not separate from Christian Stewardship, but is rather an important part of it. Planned giving offers ways – over and above our regular support to the Church’s on-going work – to share God’s gifts with others, and to grow spiritually as we live out our vocations and ministries within the mission of the Church. There are many types of planned gifts (Bequests, Gift Annuities, Trusts, Appreciated Securities, etc). For additional information...

Volunteer Support Opportunities

Find an area to match your gifts and nourish your spirit! Volunteer opportunities are available in many areas of the ministries at St Mark’s. Please click the link below and complete our Opportunities for Ministry Form to share your time and talents! The appropriate leader will be notified and will then contact you. If you have questions please contact the church office.

Gifts of Stock

If you are interested in giving a donation to St Mark’s in the form of a stock gift, we suggest the following procedure:

Send an e-mail or letter of instruction to your broker specifying the issuer and number of shares of the stock that you wish to transfer to St. Mark’s and special designation if other than annual pledge for your gift. Include in your letter the information on St. Mark’s account at Morgan Stanley:

Send a copy of your e-mail or letter of instruction to St. Mark’s Office Administrator, by email or standard mail to 600 Colorado Avenue, Palo Alto, CA 94306.

Request your broker to notify St. Mark’s when the transfer is taking place by contacting Maureen Kennedy (St Mark’s Treasurer) or our Office Administrator at 650-326-3800 ext 24. It is very important to notify us of a stock transfer as the information we receive does not always have the donor’s name with it!

You will receive an acknowledgement letter that includes the date the stock was received by St. Mark’s and its value. If you have additional questions about this procedure, please call the church office.